1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to woodcutting tools and, more particularly, to adjustable guides for power tools.
2. Description of the Related Art
A carpenter typically has wood-cutting power tools available at a work site that include a router capable of milling shapes out of wood and a circular saw capable of cutting straight through wood. These power tools are usually held by the carpenter and guided free-hand along the surface of a workpiece. The tools often include edge guides that extend laterally from the tool, for use in making straight cuts parallel to a straight edge of the wood. It is sometimes desirable to make circular cuts in wood workpieces, such as when making an archway or framing a curved window.
To make a circular cut, a carpenter often simply uses a string and pencil to draw a line on the sheet of wood that conforms to the radius of the desired arc, and then carefully guides the router or circular saw free-hand along the drawn line. This is a time-consuming and awkward task that makes it difficult to produce accurate, consistent circular cuts. The length of string might not be accurately measured or held steady, throwing off the drawn line, or the carpenter might stray from the drawn line, leaving distinct curve segments rather than a smooth arc. The quality of the circular cut is therefore highly dependent on the skill of the particular carpenter.
Cutting guides have been provided to assist carpenters in using power tools to make circular cuts in sheets of wood. Many of these guides are complicated mechanisms that are difficult to construct and to utilize, limiting their usefulness. They are often difficult to set up and can be cumbersome and heavy to transport from job to job or around a job site. Some cutting guides of this kind can be used for routers or for saws, but not for both. This could require a carpenter to obtain a different guide for each type of power tool used, again limiting the guide's usefulness.
It should therefore be appreciated that there is a need for a cutting guide that can be used for making circular cuts in sheets of wood and that can be used with both routers and saws. The present invention satisfies this need.